Powerbook 1400 does not read floppy disks or CDs

Thanks Jan,

...is that 'Tak' or 'Dank Je wel'?

Power never occured to me as a problem - the battery is still there but holds only a couple of seconds power! It died years ago and it has been powered by a 'brick' since then - I bought a few! Perhaps I should check the outputs match - it works well otherwise....just had a look and it seesm to eb the power required (24V 2.7A ?)

Yes. I have read and followed the 'Reset hold and repeat' and the 'Reset hold for 15 seconds' tricks - no difference :-( I have tried the hold down Command-Sh-Opt-Delete and Command -'C' too!

I have two SCSI Externals and IBM and a Rodime - they both run with the PB via the adaptor.

I had really hoped that I could get the LC475 to recognise one or the other becasue its INT SCSI has stuck and doesnt boot but is recognised and named - cauise thought to be disk lubricant gone hard in the cold! Its on the radiator warming as I type. I am looking at Disk Warrior. I have a System Enabler 065 ready to go on one disc for the 475 when I find a way to download the OS 7 to it too (as required I gather) and gather I then have to bless it.

There are two PCMCIA (PC Card) slots on the PB; one is occupied by the Kingston Ethernet Card but doesnt need to be there all the time so I could remove it if a type II or III card had to be used - it works well enough to have downloaded Classilla yesterday! Then I can delete IE 5.1 and Cab both of which misbehave. I was looking at a FW/USB card so that I can use an external CD Drive that I happen to have. Then I can move the OS in toto to the EXT SCSI and delete it from the INT as I install a backward OS - 8.5 seems to be recommended.

Thus the RJ45 is currently the one way to get stuff on to the PB INT Disc. I can creat an Appletalk network with the Pismo and transfer stuff from there but probably not the PIsmos CD Drive which does work. The Pismo is running 10.4.11.

I am no technician but reading the Wikipedia PB1400 page where it says it has 2 PC Card slots doesnt that suggest that a usb or firewire facility is afforded by the card where none is present...? I dont have zip drives at all, never have. I do have had several FW drives and I have a 3TB USB drive.

My aim is to get the PB downtuned to an OS that will drive the floppy and CD as well as one SCSI. My second aim is to get the LC475 running again, either with the current int drive repaired to run or with a new int drive.

You thoughts and advice are most welcome

Colin

in UK

Hej Jan

I was a visitor at KTH for 4 happy and interesting years. Having Dutch as a second language was helpful!

Thank you for your further thoughts and suggestions.

I had tried the battery out for a couple of days too but it makes no difference. Oddly though since then, if I am working on the PB very occasionally a message will come up saying that it cannot read the disk in the Drive. When I open the drive and replace it nothing further happens.

I like your second suggestion but how do I get System 7 onto the Ext HDD? I downloaded Classilla yesterday but with a 10T internet connection it could take an age. I do have seven on floppies and on a CD but cant read either!

With the LC475 its a similar problem - I only have a floppy drive working unless I can get the HDD warm and to move, so I cant put an OS on the Disk attached to the LC either. Ah, thanks for that about the Enabler. I think the os is 7.1 but I think I have 7.5 on a cd.... but no way of linking them and without a full OS running ion the 475 I can't boot the ext HDD nor run Appleshare althought I have cables and connectors. My ext CDRom Drive is sadly Firewire! :-(

The compact flash solution sounds a way forward for the PB but no help to the LC475 as there is no card slot! But, I could use the Pismo with a 7.n CD in the CD drive and the CF card in the card slot so allowing me to replace the OS on the PB 1400 if I can make the CF bootable first and dump the 9.1 to the trash or the ext disk.

Yes, I knew about the scsi disk mode. Do I just link up both computers to the scsi chain but with the LC475 switching on last OR do I link the two back to back. I have a terminator with an led which works whichever disk its on but I assume that as the computers have their own built in terminators (dont they?) and there will be no spare scsi connector all should be well? I do have a passive (pass through) terminator in case?

I do have a chance of buying an identical scsi internal disk set up with OS 7.n and with the right emulator installed for a reasonable price. I think logically - that would be the best solution as it would then allow me to format the scsi with the OS I want on the PB as well as setting up the two computers each with their external disk.... unless you can tell me otherwise. I will look at the price of the CF alternative, right away.

Again thanks this is what keeps the grey matter going around!

Colin

Hi again Jan

Yes indeed, we loved Stockholm and Taby wher my friends lived. I was a visiting Prof lecturing in what I think was called ejendomsmaeglerei or something like that...on Napoleon Bonapartes Influences on todays European Real Estate practivce and they intoduced me to HUT accross the Baltic. I was also an external at Hansehoogeschool in Groningen NL... its a long story! I remember well walking accross the harbour from the Kungsgatan side to the amazing Vasa Museet... it was frozen solid!

So, again thanks. It sounds like we now have the right approach. The 4GB memory and adaptor will arrive either side of the weekend. c£12 for the two!

The two scsi disks have never worked with any of my more recent computers (none have scsi interfaces!) so we should be ok there. I have plenty of old SCSI cables with both types of connectors. I nearly linked the two together in between the PB and the 475 but was not sure it was safe! I might try tomorrow! I have the adapter and noticed the Control Panel in Sys.

I did link both up as an Appletalk network (is there a way to join the Pismo up too? ) I had enough for my Sys 7 Disk Tools disk to be able to see the Chooser so I know it works! Years ago I set up a Network in my then office with 4 Macplusses and an SE 30 sharing an Apple Laserwriter and both big disks on an Appletalk network. It was hot desked (even pre 1990!) for our secretaries to write reports and for our book keeper to do the accounts on an integrated suite i created with Excel. Then in 1990 I went to teach at Uni for a Sabattical Year that lasted for 19! Fun though!

Again thanks I'll read up those two links

Colin

Jan

Some progress:

First I linked the two computers at either end of a daisy chain with two SCSI disks in between - the LC475 saw one disk (the fiurther away) right away and I was able to get in without any problem but it froze.

I broke up the chain and put the disk that worked with it, with the LC475 and again it booted and for a while worked but then froze.

I knew i could use it with the 1400 so I took it out of the line up.

Then I tried the second disk with the 1400 but it would not appear at all. So I put the first disk that works with the 1400 and thats OK. This is nothing new.

Next I took the second disk - which always turned ok and sometimes allowed me in from the 1400 - to pieces and put the disk into the LC475s dead (?) disks caddy and installed it on board the 475. It didnt boot at startup but I found that if i started with a Disk Utilities floppy that has a copy of "Spot On" on it, using that SW I could get the disk to appear on the desk top and could then open it. I found lots of PB1400 stuff there!

The problem seems to be that I dont have an acceptable driver on the HD in the 475 it has the enabler and a copy of 7.1 which is the system enstalled in the 475 - I looked at the now installed disk with Charis and Spot on and Schuzzy and the nearest I got to success was that the Charis programme only couldnt hep because Charis is on the Disk I want to Mount!

So, it seems that all I need is to know how to put a new driver on the disk.

Its an IBM 2 Gig disk - it clucks a bit but its fine...if only I could boot it.

It seems that there is a 68040 chip in my LC 475 already! Not one with a built in FPU though! The memory all seems to work ok - if I could get the disk to boot and use the Control panels and extensions there I can see it could be fun! Tbe power supply problem seem to be only the switch and the Display works ok too.

So... Drivers? Where do I get them from and how do I install? I dont think Charis is small enough to put oin a floppy even with a basic system!

Over to you? ;-) the data on the case and drive says its an IBM External Drive Model No: BB3 0353 S/N DV96000717 Any thoughts?

Colin

Mt Everything sounds valuable. I will get it on to my PB Rodime SCSI disk righta way..

;-) thanks ... I have more news too but will read your 3rd note before I tell all... lets just say Seagate Barracuda ... is there a SATA to SCSI converter you can recommend?....

Yep, I avoided anything unreversible last night!

So, I have found another unmounted Disk. It came for one or other of my iMacs. Its a Seagate Barracuda. I had planned to get an enclosure for it but never got there. I recognise its a SATA drive but do I recall that SATA to SCSI converters are possible?

If not can I put a SCSI flash drive on the 475 so what I produce in the PCMCIA on the Pismo can be copied to the 1400 and 475....? Again any reeks?

Sunny day here but still cold.

Thanks again...

Colin

sorry Jan... there was another odd thing!

Last night while I had the 475 going well, at one time the Info added what looked like a ' after the first number in its stats... e.g.. where it was talking about the disk space it would say 2'489 Mb and where uit spoke of the memory it did the same. It didnt do it later but I did apply a little pressure to the memory and VRAM cards.

Colin